Mistry calls for openness, synergy among Tata group firms

New Delhi: Calling for a culture of openness and pooling of resources across companies, Tata Group Chairman Cyrus Mistry has asked firms of the conglomerate to focus on innovation and remain agile to succeed in an uncertain and volatile environment.

In a year-end letter to employees, Mistry, who has completed a year at the helm of the group, said that after realising the distinctiveness of every Tata enterprise, "each needs to be viewed in a manner that is appreciative of its uniqueness".

Exhorting the employees to carry forward the legacy of the group's founder Jamsetji Tata, whose 175th birth anniversary is being commemorated, Mistry said the year gone by has witnessed a business environment that has continued to be volatile and uncertain.

"This is a time for us to re-look at some of our strategies, recalibrate our business models, fine-tune our execution capabilities and invest in our future," he said.

Stagnant or sluggish economic growth across some of the group's key markets such as India and Europe impacted the performance of several Tata companies, he added.

"To succeed in an uncertain and volatile environment, it is critical that our businesses evaluate alternate scenarios of the future while crafting our strategies. Our organizations will need to embrace agility, powered by teams with the aptitude and capability for continual learning," Mistry said.

Spelling out key factors to remain relevant in an increasingly competitive world, he said: "We shall put innovation capability at the core of each of our companies' operating structures and will invest in R&D and grow top talent."

Calling for more synergy among the over 100 operating companies of the group, Mistry said: "As a group, we must also continue to seek opportunities for our companies to pool resources to co-create shared value. There is so much that collaboration between our companies can offer, be it in areas like innovation, management of technology, or identifying the emerging needs and wants of consumers."

Highlighting factors that will influence on how successful the group will be in achieving its goals, he said, "Principal among these will be our ability to foster a culture of openness across the Tata group, and develop a performance oriented framework that values each colleague's contribution as well as cultural fit with the group. This requires significant investment in people development and in encouraging diversity in the workplace."